EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — The UConn football team went all 12 rounds with Liberty on Saturday afternoon and eventually the Huskies won, 36-33, by knockout. The 15,107 fans in attendance stormed onto Rentschler Field in jubilation, knowing the win clinched a record of at least .500 or better and bowl eligibility for the first time since 2015, all in head coach Jim Mora’s first season.
The final punches were exchanged in the middle of the fourth quarter when Liberty, leading 33-28, decided to go on a fourth-and-1. Flames head coach Hugh Freeze called for a screen pass. Quarterback Johnathan Bennett found Malik Caper four yards behind the line of scrimmage and linebacker Jackson Mitchell made the tackle for loss.
A few plays later, with UConn’s offense having started on the Flames’ side of the field, quarterback Zion Turner dropped a perfect pass into receiver Kevens Clercius’ hands and he strolled into the end zone to give the Huskies a 36-33 lead with just under six minutes remaining.
A Liberty punt, a UConn turnover on downs, and a Liberty turnover on downs later, the Huskies’ bowl dreams were granted.
UConn got on the board first with a 51-yard drive capped off by a shifty 16-yard run by Victor Rosa into the end zone.
Two plays after Eric Watts burst through the Liberty offensive line for a quarterback sack, he did it again — only the second time he ripped the ball from Liberty backup Kaidon Salter’s hands. Mitchell scooped the ball and ran 31 yards into the end zone to give the Huskies a 14-3 first-quarter lead.
Mitchell finished the game with nine tackles and 1.5 for loss to go along with his nation-leading fifth fumble recovery which he returned for the touchdown.
Later, on a drive that he started with a 58-yard run, Robert Burns punched it into the end zone from the Liberty goal line to give the Huskies a 21-10 advantage with just over five minutes to go in the first half.
The UConn defense forced the Flames to punt from the back of their end zone, but a bad decision by Turner to throw into double coverage down the sideline resulted in an interception near midfield. The Flames quickly got into the red zone and were able to work the clock down to 35 seconds before punching it in from the goal line, cutting the deficit to four, 21-17 into halftime.
The Flames moved 80 yards in seven plays and just over two minutes to take the lead on the opening drive of the second half — TJ Green ran into the end zone from the one to make it 24-21.
Four penalties near the end of the third quarter helped keep the Huskies in the game. An offensive pass interference call pushed the Flames back 15 yards as they knocked on the door of the end zone. Liberty had to settle for a 34-yard field goal at the 4:24 mark of the third quarter to extend the lead, 27-21. Then, on UConn’s ensuing drive, the Flames were called for illegal hands to the face, 15 yards, offsides, five yards, and Ahmad Walker — who intercepted Turner — was ejected for targeting, which ejected him from the game and gave UConn 15 yards and a first down after punter George Caratan had already run on the field.
Two plays later, Rosa made a highlight reel 27-yard scamper into the end zone for his second touchdown of the day, and reclaimed the lead for the Huskies, 28-27. Liberty’s Demario Douglas, who tallied 105 rushing yards and a touchdown, took the first play of the ensuing drive 75 yards down the sideline and into the end zone for what resulted in the Flames’ final score of the day.
Rosa finished with 62 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Burns added 104 important yards and a touchdown on just 11 carries.
UConn, 6-5, will head to Army for its final game of the season and a chance to earn its seventh win for the first time since 2010.
